The remix does respect the original version of the song, fortunately, but adds some elements in order to make it sound a little more contemporary. Jens Kuphal was responsible for the additional programming, postproduction and mix.
My collection: 7" single no. 7663
Found: Record fair, Den Bosch, 12 April 2025
Tracks: 'Lass mich dein Pirat sein (remix '91)' / 'Du kennst die Liebe nicht (live version)'
While the previous single 'Mondsong' reached number 37 in the German singles chart (already a low position for the band), 'Engel der Nacht' didn't chart at all. After this, frontwoman Gabriele Susanne Kerner went solo (confusingly under the stage name Nena) and enjoyed some success on her own.
My collection: 7" single no. 7544
Found: Record fair, Amsterdam, 19 January 2025
Tracks: 'Engel der Nacht (remix)' / 'Zusammen'
The last single taken from the album was 'Du kennst die Liebe nicht', released in 1985. The single features a live version of the same track on the B-side.
My collection: 7" single no. 7475
Found: Discogs.com, received 28 November 2024
Tracks: 'Du kennst die Liebe nicht' / 'Du kennst die Liebe nicht (live)'
Having bought the 12" single of 'It's all in the game' and the 7" single of 'Haus der drei Sonnen', it's obvious that I still had to have the 7" single of the former and the 12" single of the latter. The mission continues, but half of it has been successful: I found the 12" single of 'Haus der drei Sonnen'.
'Haus der drei Sonnen' ('House of three suns') was released as the third single from Nena's 1985 album 'Feuer und Flamme'. The song was released internationally as 'It's all in the game', but it wouldn't be a very big success for Nena. Just like this single, which only reached number 43 in Germany.
'Jung wie du' ('Young like you') was released in 1985 as the fourth and final single from Nena's 1984 album 'Feuer und Flamme' ('Fire and flames').
I've been searching for this single for such a long time, that I totally forgot I was searching for it. I saw it for the first time in over 10 years, and for a reasonable price too. For a moment, I was even wondering whether I had it or not...
In 1986, Nena released their sixth album 'Eisbrecher' ('Ice breaker'). It was to be their last album as a band; frontwoman Nena Kerner continued as a solo artist, still using the name Nena. The single 'Mondsong' was written by her and recorded with the band.
Having achieved widespread success in Europe and Japan with '99 Luftballons', Nena wanted to try their luck in the rest of the world with an English version of the song. Kevin McAlea wrote this version, titled '99 red balloons', which has a more satirical tone than the original. The English version is not a direct translation of the German but contains a somewhat different set of lyrics.
It was not their debut single, but the biggest hit of Nena's career did come early on in their career. The lyric of the song was written by the band's guitarist Carlo Karges after he was at a Rolling Stones concert in Berlin. He noticed that balloons were being released. As he watched them move toward the horizon, he noticed them shifting and changing shapes, to the point of looking a lot like some UFO. He thought about what might happen if they floated over the Berlin Wall to the Soviet sector. The lyric speaks of an apocalyptic overreaction by military forces.
While Nena was becoming a household name in all of Europe with English versions of her earlier singles '99 Luftballons' and 'Nur geträumt' ('99 red balloons' and 'Just a dream' respectively), she also released a German single from her debut album 'Nena'.
Not content with having a European hit with 'Nur geträumt', the German band Nena recorded the track in an English version entitled 'Just a dream'. This English version was the follow-up to '99 red balloons', the English version of her hit '99 Luftballons' which reached number 1 in the UK.
Nena released the original version of 'Irgendwie, irgendwo, irgendwann' in 1984. It was the first single from their 1985 album 'Feuer und Flamme', released a year later. After two previous singles failed to reach the German top 10, this one shot up to number 3, shuffling the band right back into the limelight again.
'Feuer und Flamme' was the title of Nena's fourth album, released in 1984. It was the first album of the band to be reproduced in English in its entirity. The English version 'It's all in the game' was released in 1985.
I already wrote about 'Just a dream', but this is the original single. 'Nur geträumt' was taken from Nena's self-titled debut album, and it was originally released as their debut single in Germany. It became an instant hit there after the band appeared on the German television show 'Musikladen'. The single reportedly sold 40,000 copies the day after the song appeared on the show and reached number two in the German charts.
Sometimes when you're in a record shop, going through the racks, you get this 'what's this?'-experience. Finding this 12" single was such a moment. I was buying a few 12" singles and while I was browsing I saw this sleeve. It was an English version of Nena's hit 'Nur geträumt', and both the sleeve picture and the title of the record instantly drew my attention to it. I wanted to try it out, because the original German track was eighties pop at its best.
After having had hits with '99 Luftballons', 'Nur geträumt' and 'Leuchtturm' in the Netherlands, '? (Fragezeichen)' was the first single taken from Nena's second album of the same name. It was a good success, peaking at number 12 in the beginning of 1984. The b-side 'Ich lieb' dich' was sung by band member Carlo Kages.
After her international success with '99 red balloons', German singer Nena tried to equal that success with later work. Her attempts were sympathetic, but not successful. Her first album 'Nena' was slightly successful in the UK, but the second English-language album 'It's all in the game' sunk without a trace.